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Sunday, August 7, 2016

Faith Versus Fear-Some Serious Meat, For The Serious Christian

C.H. Spurgeon

THE
believer when he is brought into peace with God does not tremble at
the thought of God’s power. He does not ask, “Wilt He plead
against me with His great power?” But he says, “No, that very
power, once my terror, and fear, is now my refuge and my hope, for He
shall put that very power in me.

I
rejoice that God is Almighty, for He will lend me His omnipotence—
‘He will put strength into me.’” The very power which would
have damned my soul, saves my soul. The very power that would have
crushed me, God puts into me, that the work of salvation may be
accomplished. No, He will not use it to crush me, but He will put
that very strength into me. Dost see there the Mighty One upon His
throne? Dread Sovereign, I see Thine awful arm. What, wilt Thou crush
the sinner? Wilt Thou utterly destroy him with Thy strength? “No,”
saith He, “come hither, child.” And if you go to His almighty
throne, “There,” saith He, “that self-same arm which made thee
quake, see there, I give it to thee.

Go
out and live. I have made thee mighty as I am, to do My works; I will
put strength into thee. The same strength which would have broken
thee to pieces on the wheel shall now be put into thee, that thou
mayest do mighty works.”

Now,
this great strength sometimes goes out in prayer. Did you ever hear a
man pray in whom God had put strength? You have heard some of us poor
puny souls pray, I dare say; but have you ever heard a man pray that
God had made into a giant? Oh, if you have, you will say it is a
mighty thing to hear such a man in supplication. I have seen him as
if he had seized the angel, and would pull him down.

I
have seen him now and then slip in his wrestling; but, like a giant,
he has recovered his footing, and seemed, like Jacob, to hurl the
angel to the ground. I have marked the man lay hold upon the throne
of mercy, and declare, “Lord, I will never let go, except thou
bless me.” I have seen him, when heaven’s gates have been
apparently barred, go up to them, and say, “Ye gates, open wide in
Jesus’ name;” and I have seen the gates fly open before him, as
if the man were God himself; for he is armed with God Almighty’s
strength. I have seen that man, in prayer, discover some great
mountain in his way; and he prayed it down, until it became a very
molehill. He has beaten the hills and made them like chaff by the
immensity of his might.

Some
of you think: I am talking enthusiasm; but such cases have been, and
are now. Oh, to have heard Luther pray! Luther, you know, when
Melancthon was dying, went to his death-bed, and said, “Melancthon,
you
shall not die!” “Oh;” said Melancthon, “I must die! It is a
world of toil and trouble.” “Melancthon,” said he, “I have
need of thee, and God’s cause has need of thee, and as my name is
Luther, thou shalt not die!” The physician said he would. Well,
down went Luther on his knees, and began to tug at death. Old Death
struggled mightily for Melancthon, and he had got him well-nigh on
his shoulders. “Drop him,” said Luther, “drop him, I want him.”
“No,” said Death, “he is my prey, I will take him!” “Down
with him,” said Luther, “down with him, Death, or I will wrestle
with thee!” And he seemed to take hold of the grim monster, and
hurl him to the ground; and he came off victorious, like an Orpheus,
with his wife, up from the very shades of death; he had delivered
Melancthon from death by prayer!

“Oh,”
say you, “that is an extraordinary case.” No, not one-half so
extraordinary as you dream. Men and women have done the same in other
cases; have asked a thing of God, and have had it; that have been to
the throne, and showed a promise, and said they would not come away
without its fulfillment, and have come back from God’s throne
conquerors of the Almighty; for prayer moves the arm that moves the
world. “Prayer is the sinew of God,” said one, “it moves His
arm;” and so it is. Verily, in prayer, with the strength of the
faithful heart, there is a beautiful fulfillment of the text, “He
will put strength in me.”

Not
only in prayer, but in duty,
the man who has great faith in God, and whom God has girded with
strength, how gigantic does he become! Have you never read of those
great heroes who put to flight whole armies, and scattered kings like
the snow on Salmon? Have you never read of those men that were
fearless of foes, and stalked onward before all their opposers, as if
they would as soon die as live?

I
read of a case in the old kirk of Scotland, before that King James
who wished to force “the black prelacy” upon them. Andrew
Melville and some of his associates were deputed to wait upon the
king, and as they were going with a scroll ready written, they were
warned to take care and return, for their lives were at stake. They
paused a moment, and Andrew said, “I am not afraid, thank God, nor
feeble-spirited in the cause and message of Christ; come what pleases
God to send, our commission shall be executed.” At these words the
deputation took courage, and went forward. On reaching the palace,
and having obtained an audience, they found his majesty attended by
Lennox and Arran, and several other lords, all of whom were English.
They presented their remonstrance. Arran lifted it from the table,
and glancing over it, he then turned to the ministers, and furiously
demanded, “Who dares sign these treasonable articles?” “WE
dare,” said Andrew Melville, “and will render our lives in the
cause.”

Having
thus spoken, he came forward to the table, took the pen, subscribed
his name, and was followed by his brethren. Arran and Lennox were
confounded; the king looked on in silence, and the nobles in
surprise. Thus did our good forefathers appear before kings, and yet
we are not ashamed. “The proud had them greatly in derision, yet
they declined not from the law of God.” Having thus discharged
their duty, after a brief conference, the minister’s were permitted
to depart in peace. The king trembled more at them than if a whole
army had been at his gates; and why was this? It was because God had
put His own strength into them to make them masters of their duty.
And you have some such in your midst now. Despised they may be; but
God has made them like the lion-like men of David, who would go down
into the pit in the depth of winter, and take the lion by the throat
and slay him.

We
have some in our churches — but a remnant, I admit — who are not
afraid to serve their God, like Abdiel, “faithful amongst the
faithless found.” We have some who are superior to the customs of
the age, and scorn to bow at mammon’s knee, who will not use the
trimming language of too many modern ministers, but stand out for
God’s gospel, and the pure white banner of Christ, unstained and
unsullied by the doctrines of men. Then are they mighty! Why they are
mighty is because God has put strength in them.

“And
shall I hold on to the end?” says the believer. Yes, thou wilt, for
God’s strength is in thee. “Shall I be able to bear such-and-such
a trial?” Yes, thou wilt. Cannot Omnipotence stem the torrent? And
Omnipotence is in thee; for, like Ignatius of old, thou art a
God-bearer; thou bearest God about with thee. Thy heart is a temple
of the Holy Ghost, and thou shalt yet overcome. “But can I ever
stand firm in such-and-such an evil day?” Oh, yes you will, for He
will put His strength in you!

I
was in company, some time ago, with some ministers; one of them
observed, “Brother, if there were to be stakes in Smithfield again,
I am afraid they would find very few to burn among us.” “Well,”
I said, “I do not know anything about how you would burn; but this
I know right well, that there never will be any lack of men who are
ready to die for Christ.” “Oh!” said he, “but they are not
the right sort of men.” “Well,” said I, “but do you think
they are the Lord’s children?” “Yes, I believe they are, but
they are not the right sort.” “Ah!” said I, “but you would
find them the right sort, if they came to the test, every one of
them; they have not got burning grace yet. What would be the use of
it.” We do not want the grace till the stakes come; but we should
have burning grace in burning moments. If now a hundred of us were
called to die for Christ, I believe there would not only be found a
hundred, but five hundred, that would march to death, and sing all
the way. Whenever I find faith, I believe that God will put strength
into the man; and I never think anything to be impossible to a man
with faith in God, while it is written, “He will put strength in
me.”

Caesar
could not swim the Tiber, accoutered as he was; and dost thou hope to
swim the Jordan with thy flesh about thee? No, thou wilt sink then,
unless Jesus, as AEneas
did Anchises, from the flames of Rome, upon his shoulders, lift thee
from Jordan, and carry thee across the stream, thou wilt never be
able to walk across the river; thou wilt ne’er be able to face that
tyrant and smile in his face, unless thou hast something more than
mortal. Thou wilt need then to be belted about with the girdle of
divinity, or else thy loins will be loosed, and thy strength will
fail thee, when thou needest it most.

Many
a man has ventured to the Jordan in his own strength; but oh! how he
has shrieked and howled, when the first wave has touched his feet!
But never weakling went to death with God within him, but he found
himself mightier than the grave. Go on, Christian, for this is thy
promise, “He will put strength in me.”

“Weak,
though I am, yet through His might,

I
all things can perform.’”

Go
on; dread not God’s power, but rejoice at this, He will put His
strength in you; He will not use His power to crush you.